


Changes

by RadarsTeddyBear



Series: Ducktober 2018 [6]
Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: Broken Bone, Fictober, Gen, Mentioned Della, Mentioned Gladstone, Parallels, Vignette, introspective, prompt: broken bone
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-07
Updated: 2018-10-07
Packaged: 2019-07-27 10:15:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16216949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RadarsTeddyBear/pseuds/RadarsTeddyBear
Summary: Donald notices some parallels in how the triplets act when Dewey's status changes to "the kid with the cool cast" after he breaks his arm.





	Changes

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: ["Broken Bone"](http://radarsteddybear.tumblr.com/post/169006603389/whumpreads-i-dont-draw-but-ive-been-thinking).

Donald watched his nephews come up the pier on their way home from school.  Today, they were followed by a number of their classmates. Dewey, a bright orange cast on his arm, seemed to be regaling the group with an embellished reenactment of the incident that had earned him that cast.  Louie was collecting money and passing around a Sharpie, evidently charging for the privilege of signing Dewey’s cast. And Huey had that look on his face that he wore when reciting Junior Woodchuck Guidebook rules in an attempt to wrangle his brothers, looking like he was struggling to get a word in edgewise.

Donald shook his head.  It was a far cry from last weekend, when Dewey had been crying in the emergency room while his brothers had held his hand, fighting tears of their own.  Sure, if Donald had stopped to think about it, he easily could have predicted the scene in front of him. But he’d been a little too busy fretting over his little boy with a broken arm and his equally distraught brothers to think that far into the future.

The boys had been playing some sort of game involving knights and swords around the main deck of the houseboat.  Their life jackets had become suits of armor, and some old mailing tubes had become swords. Sure, the boys had been running around a bit more than Donald would have liked, but he was busy working--and a job that allowed him to work from home wasn’t something he was going to risk losing very easily.  And besides, he’d been keeping an eye on them. At least, he thought he had been.

Anyway, at some point, Dewey had decided that it would be a good idea to climb onto the roof.  Which, from a tactical standpoint, wasn’t exactly _wrong_ , but from a practical standpoint, was _extremely_ wrong.  As evidenced by the _thud_ that had vibrated through the floorboards shortly after.  

By the time Donald had gotten outside, Dewey was bawling, Louie was near tears, and Huey was trying to keep Dewey from moving so much as a single muscle.  And Dewey’s arm was _definitely_ broken.

Donald took another look outside.  Dewey was now acting out what looked like a bullfight, Louie was counting a stack of dollar bills, and Huey was holding his forehead in his hand.  Donald smiled sadly. The scene was so familiar. Twenty-five years ago, it would have been Della jumping off roofs and then telling increasingly fantastic stories about how she’d earned her injury, each making her look enormously brave, daring and strong.  Gladstone would have been collecting money in exchange for the privilege of being able to sign her cast, but only because someone had first offered him the money; he never would have come up with the idea on his own. And Donald would have been alternating between trying to get Della to stop telling untenable lies and yelling at Gladstone to stop taking advantage of their classmates (and then getting into a fight with him later when he refused to split the dough).  

The spot in Donald’s heart where Della belonged felt especially empty today.

Donald checked the clock and decided that enough was enough.  He stepped outside and whistled.

“Time to come in, boys!” he called.  Huey obediently started making his way up the dock.  Dewey bowed theatrically while one last kid finished signing his cast.  Louie was still taking money from a few kids who hadn’t gotten the chance to sign it yet.

“Now!” Donald said, adding just enough sharpness to his voice to get Dewey and especially Louie’s attention.

“It was nice of you to collect of all of that money for Dewey,” Donald said to Louie as the boys came on deck.

“What?  No! I mean--” Louie spluttered.  “It was my idea!”

“It’s his cast,” Donald said with a shrug.  “So it’s his money.”

“Shouldn’t I at least get a finder’s fee?”

“You’ll have to discuss that with your brother,” Donald said, transferring the money from Louie’s hands to Dewey’s.  Dewey waggled his eyebrows at a still-grumbling Louie while Huey launched into a frustrated speech about how it had been unethical to take the money in the first place and how they should give it all back tomorrow.

Donald felt his heart squeeze.  Some things never changed, and sometimes they changed far too much.


End file.
